There has been sporadic interest in cement concrete as electrical insulator since about 1952. Recently, this interest has quickened mainly due to economic pressures brought about by the rise in cost of conventional porcelain and epoxy insulators.
Concrete is a mixture of an aggregate and a binder which can be cement or a polymer, or both. A major problem in the use of concrete as an electrical insulator is the difficulty in constructing an insulator which has sufficient resistance to high humidity. It has been found that moisture is a single most deleterious component which affects the electrical properties of a polymer containing concrete. Even a seemingly insignificant amount of residual moisture, i.e., about 0.2% or less, can adversely effect the electrical properties.
It is the object of this invention to provide a polymer containing electrical insulation grade concrete in which the adverse effect of residual moisture has been greatly minimized. This and other objects of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description.